Increased plasma levels of monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 in patients with hepatitis B virus pre-S2 gene deletion mutation predict a higher risk of hepatocellular carcinoma recurrence after curative surgical resection.

BACKGROUND: Despite resection surgery as a curative therapy for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the high rate of postoperative HCC recurrence remains a big challenge for patient survival. Chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is the most important risk factor for HCC. Deletion mutation in the HBV pre-S2 gene leads to expression of an essential viral oncoprotein called pre-S2 mutant and represents an independent prognostic biomarker for HCC recurrence after curative surgical resection. Additionally, cytokines are multifunctional secreted proteins and implicated in all stages of HBV-related HCC tumorigenesis. METHODS: This study aimed to identify the cytokines whose plasma levels were associated with pre-S2 gene deletion mutation and HCC recurrence and evaluate their potential to be combined with pre-S2 gene deletion mutation in predicting HCC recurrence. RESULTS: Among a panel of 27 cytokines examined, plasma levels of monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) were significantly upregulated in patients with pre-S2 gene deletion mutation or HCC recurrence. MCP-1 was validated as an independent prognostic biomarker for HCC recurrence. Moreover, patients with both the presence of pre-S2 gene deletion mutation and high levels of MCP-1 displayed a higher risk of HCC recurrence than patients with either one or none of these two biomarkers. The combination of pre-S2 gene deletion mutation and MCP-1 levels exhibited a better prognostic performance for HCC recurrence than each biomarker alone. CONCLUSIONS: This study discovered that MCP-1 levels had a significance to be as a combination biomarker with pre-S2 gene deletion mutation providing an improved performance in predicting HCC recurrence after curative surgical resection.

Mini Review: Molecular Interpretation of the IGF/IGF-1R Axis in Cancer Treatment and Stem Cells-Based Therapy in Regenerative Medicine.

In addition to the fundamental role of insulin-like growth factor (IGF)/IGF-1 receptor (IGF-1R) signaling dysregulation in cancer initiation and proliferation, the IGF/IGF-1R signaling also plays an important role in the maintenance of stem cell characteristics and enhancement of stem cell-based therapeutic efficacy. This review focused on the role of IGF/IGF-1R signaling in preclinical IGF-targeted therapies, including IGF-1R monoclonal antibodies, IGF-1R tyrosine kinase inhibitors, and neutralizing antibodies of IGFs in multiple tumors and endocrine disorders. On the other hand, the function of IGF/IGF-1R signaling in stem cell self-renewal, pluripotency and therapeutic efficacy in regenerative medicine was outlined. Finally, the review summarized ongoing studies on IGF/IGF-1R signaling blockade in multiple cancers and highlighted the IGF-1R signaling modifications in stem cells as a potential strategy to improve stem cell-based therapeutics in regenerative medicine.

Therapeutic efficacy of dendritic cell vaccine combined with programmed death 1 inhibitor for hepatocellular carcinoma.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remains a serious cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. Developing new therapeutic strategies is urgently needed to improve the outcomes of HCC patients. Dendritic cell (DC)-based vaccines and programmed death 1 (PD-1) immune checkpoint inhibitors have been regarded as potential immunotherapeutics for HCC. However, the therapeutic efficacy of combining these two treatments for HCC remains to be evaluated. METHODS: In this study, DCs were derived from mouse bone marrow and pulsed with mouse HCC cell lysates to generate a DC vaccine. A monoclonal antibody that blocks the interaction of mouse PD-1 with its ligands was used as a PD-1 inhibitor. An orthotopic HCC mouse model was established to assess the effect of a DC vaccine in combination with a PD-1 inhibitor on overall survival and tumor volume. RESULTS: Compared with the untreated control, single treatment with a DC vaccine or PD-1 inhibitor prolonged the overall survival and reduced the tumor volume of HCC mice. Further, compared with the single treatment with the DC vaccine or the PD-1 inhibitor, a combination treatment using both agents elicited a higher cytotoxicity of T cells against HCC cells and resulted in a better overall survival, smaller tumor volume, and greater tumor cell apoptosis in HCC mice. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that a combination treatment with DC vaccine and PD-1 inhibitor may be a promising therapeutic strategy for HCC.

A biphasic response pattern of lipid metabolomics in the stage progression of hepatitis B virus X tumorigenesis.

Metabolic syndrome has closely linked to the development of human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). By using the hepatitis B virus (HBV) X (HBx) transgenic mouse model, we studied the dynamic evolution of serum and liver profiles of lipids and global cDNA expression at different stages of HBx tumorigenesis. We observed that the lipid (triglycerides, cholesterol, and fatty acids) profiles revealed a biphasic response pattern during the progression of HBx tumorigenesis: a small peak at early phase and a large peak or terminal switch at the tumor phase. By analyzing cDNA microarray data, the early peak correlated to the oxidative stress and pro-inflammatory response, which then resolved at the middle phase and were followed by the terminal metabolic switch in the tumor tissues. Five lipid metabolism-related genes, the arachidonate 5-lipoxygenase, lipoprotein lipase, fatty acid binding protein 4, 1-acylglycerol-3-phosphate O-acyltransferase 9, and apolipoprotein A-IV were identified to be significantly activated in HBx transgenic HCCs and further validated in human HBV-related HCCs. Inhibition of these lipid genes could reverse the effect of HBx on lipid biosynthesis and suppress HBx-induced cell proliferation in vitro. Our results support the concept that metabolic syndrome plays an important role in HBV tumorigenesis. The dysregulation of lipid metabolic genes may predict the disease progression to HCC in chronic hepatitis B patients.

Activation of ATP citrate lyase by mTOR signal induces disturbed lipid metabolism in hepatitis B virus pre-S2 mutant tumorigenesis.

UNLABELLED: The development of hepatitis B virus (HBV)-related hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has been found to be associated with disturbed lipid metabolism. To elucidate the role of lipid metabolism in HBV tumorigenesis, we investigated the dynamic pattern of lipid metabolism in HBV pre-S2 mutant-induced tumorigenesis. Lipid and gene expression profiles were analyzed in an in vitro culture system and in transgenic mouse livers harboring HBV pre-S2 mutant. The pre-S2 mutant transgenic livers showed a biphasic pattern of lipid accumulation, starting from mild fatty change in early (1 month) transgenic livers, which subsided and then, remarkably, increased in HCC tissues. This biphasic pattern was synchronized with ATP citrate lyase (ACLY) activation. Further analyses revealed that the pre-S2 mutant initiated an endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress-dependent mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signalling cascade. The pre-S2 mutant-induced mTOR signal activated the sterol regulatory element binding transcription factor 1 (SREBF1) to upregulate ACLY, which then activated the fatty acid desaturase 2 (FADS2), mediated through ACLY-dependent histone acetylation. Such an ER stress-dependent mTOR signal cascade also is important for the proliferation of hepatocytes in vitro and is further validated in HBV-related HCC tissues. IMPORTANCE: Aberrations of lipid metabolism frequently occur in chronic HBV infection. Our results provide a potential mechanism of disturbed lipid metabolism in HBV pre-S2 mutant-induced tumorigenesis, which should be valuable for the design of HCC chemoprevention in high-risk HBV carriers.

The emerging role of hepatitis B virus pre-S2 deletion mutant proteins in HBV tumorigenesis.

Chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection can cause hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Several hypotheses have been proposed to explain the mechanisms of HBV tumorigenesis, including inflammation and liver regeneration associated with cytotoxic immune injuries and transcriptional activators of mutant HBV gene products. The mutant viral oncoprotein-driven tumorigenesis is prevailed at the advanced stage or anti-HBe-positive phase of chronic HBV infection. Besides HBx, the pre-S2 (deletion) mutant protein represents a newly recognized oncoprotein that is accumulated in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and manifests as type II ground glass hepatocytes (GGH). The retention of pre-S2 mutant protein in ER can induce ER stress and initiate an ER stress-dependent VEGF/Akt/mTOR and NFκB/COX-2 signal pathway. Additionally, the pre-S2 mutant large surface protein can induce an ER stress-independent pathway to transactivate JAB-1/p27/RB/cyclin A,D pathway, leading to growth advantage of type II GGH. The pre-S2 mutant protein-induced ER stress can also cause DNA damage, centrosome overduplication, and genomic instability. In 5-10% of type II GGHs, there is co-expression of pre-S2 mutant protein and HBx antigen which exhibited enhanced oncogenic effects in transgenic mice. The mTOR signal cascade is consistently activated throughout the course of pre-S2 mutant transgenic livers and in human HCC tissues, leading to metabolic disorders and HCC tumorigenesis. Clinically, the presence of pre-S2 deletion mutants in sera frequently develop resistance to nucleoside analogues anti-virals and predict HCC development. The pre-S2 deletion mutants and type II GGHs therefore represent novel biomarkers of HBV-related HCCs. A versatile DNA array chip has been developed to detect pre-S2 mutants in serum. Overall, the presence of pre-S2 mutants in serum has implications for anti-viral treatment and can predict HCC development. Targeting at pre-S2 mutant protein-induced, ER stress-dependent, mTOR signal cascade and metabolic disorders may offer potential strategy for chemoprevention or therapy in high risk chronic HBV carriers.

Predictive Biomarkers of Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor-Based Mono- and Combination Therapies for Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is among the most frequent and deadly human cancers worldwide. It has been shown that interaction between immune checkpoint receptors and ligands plays a crucial role in inhibition of T cell-mediated anti-tumor immune responses, thereby assisting tumor cells to evade the host immune surveillance. Therefore, several immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) that selectively block immune checkpoint receptors or ligands have been developed as clinically effective and safe immunotherapeutic agents for treating HCC, including the inhibitors targeting cytotoxic T lymphocyte-associated antigen 4, programmed death 1, and programmed death ligand 1. In addition, various combinations of ICIs and other ICIs or tyrosine kinase inhibitors or vascular endothelial growth factor inhibitors have also emerged as clinically beneficial treatments for HCC. However, the overall response rates of ICI mono-therapy and combination therapy in HCC patients remain unsatisfied, highlighting the urgent need for discovering valuable predictive biomarkers to achieve personalized therapy. This review comprehensively summarizes the literature-based evidence validating a variety of biomarkers with predictive significance for treatment responses and outcomes in HCC patients receiving various ICI-based mono- and combination therapies.

Prognostic Significance of Serum Albumin Level and Albumin-Based Mono- and Combination Biomarkers in Patients with Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the predominant form of primary liver cancer. Although many surgical and nonsurgical therapeutic options have been established for treating HCC, the overall prognosis for HCC patients receiving different treatment modalities remains inadequate, which causes HCC to remain among the most life-threatening human cancers worldwide. Therefore, it is vitally important and urgently needed to develop valuable and independent prognostic biomarkers for the early prediction of poor prognosis in HCC patients, allowing more time for more timely and appropriate treatment to improve the survival of patients. As the most abundant protein in plasma, human serum albumin (ALB) is predominantly expressed by the liver and exhibits a wide variety of essential biological functions. It has been well recognized that serum ALB level is a significant independent biomarker for a broad spectrum of human diseases including cancer. Moreover, ALB has been commonly used as a potent biomaterial and therapeutic agent in clinical settings for the treatment of various human diseases. This review provides a comprehensive summary of the evidence from the up-to-date published literature to underscore the prognostic significance of serum ALB level and various ALB-based mono- and combination biomarkers in the prediction of the prognosis of HCC patients after treatment with different surgical, locoregional, and systemic therapies.

Combination of Hepatitis B Virus Pre-S2 Gene Deletion Mutation and Tumor-Node-Metastasis Stage Predicts Higher Hepatocellular Carcinoma Recurrence after Curative Surgical Resection.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most frequent and life-threatening human cancers worldwide. Despite curative resection surgery, the high recurrence rate of HCC leads to poor patient survival. Chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is a major etiological factor for HCC. HBV pre-S2 gene deletion mutation leads to the expression of an important oncoprotein called a pre-S2 mutant. It represents an independent prognostic biomarker for HCC recurrence. This study aimed to identify other independent prognostic biomarkers from clinicopathological characteristics of 75 HBV-related HCC patients receiving resection surgery and to validate their potential to be combined with pre-S2 gene deletion mutation as a combination biomarker for HCC recurrence. Patients with both the presence of pre-S2 gene deletion mutation and tumor-node-metastasis (TNM) stage IIIA-IIIC had a higher HCC recurrence risk than patients with either one or none of these two factors. Moreover, the combination of pre-S2 gene deletion mutation and TNM stage exhibited better performance than either of these two factors alone in discriminating patients from patients without HCC recurrence. Collectively, this study proposed that the TNM stage held significance as a combination biomarker with pre-S2 gene deletion mutation with a greater performance in predicting HCC recurrence after curative surgical resection.

Novel feedback inhibition of surface antigen synthesis by mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signal and its implication for hepatitis B virus tumorigenesis and therapy.

UNLABELLED: Ground glass hepatocytes (GGHs) harboring hepatitis B virus (HBV) pre-S mutants have been recognized as precursor lesions of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Previously, we observed the activation of mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) in GGHs and HCCs, together with a decreased expression of HBV surface antigen (HBsAg) in HCC tissues. It is, therefore, hypothesized that the activation of mTOR during HBV tumorigenesis may potentially down-regulate HBsAg expression. In this study, we verified an inverse relationship between the expression of HBsAg and phosphorylated mTOR (p-mTOR) in 13 of 20 paired nontumorous liver and HCC tissues. In vitro, wild-type or mutant pre-S proteins could activate mTOR in the HuH-7 cell line. Interestingly, the up-regulated mTOR, in turn, suppressed HBsAg synthesis at the transcriptional level via the transcription factor, Yin Yang 1 (YY1), which bound to nucleotide 2812-2816 of the pre-S1 promoter. This inhibitory effect by the mTOR signal could be abolished by the knockdown of histone deacetylase 1 (HDAC1). Furthermore, YY1 was physically associated with HDAC1 in a manner dependent on mTOR activation. Collectively, pre-S protein-induced mTOR activation may recruit the YY1-HDAC1 complex to feedback suppress transcription from the pre-S1 promoter. CONCLUSION: The activation of mTOR signal in GGHs may feedback suppress HBsAg synthesis during HBV tumorigenesis and explain the observed decrease or absence of HBsAg in HCC tissues. Therapy using mTOR inhibitors for HCCs may potentially activate HBV replication in patients with chronic HBV infection.

Association of Increased Programmed Death Ligand 1 Expression and Regulatory T Cells Infiltration with Higher Hepatocellular Carcinoma Recurrence in Patients with Hepatitis B Virus Pre-S2 Mutant after Curative Surgical Resection.

Although surgical resection is available as a potentially curative therapy for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), high recurrence of HCC after surgery remains a serious obstacle for long-term patient survival. Therefore, the discovery of valuable prognostic biomarkers for HCC recurrence is urgently needed. Pre-S2 mutant is a mutant form of hepatitis B virus (HBV) large surface protein which is expressed from the HBV surface gene harboring deletion mutations spanning the pre-S2 gene segment. Pre-S2 mutant-positive HCC patients have been regarded as a high-risk population of HCC recurrence after resection surgery and display increased immune checkpoint programmed death ligand 1 (PD-L1) expression and pro-tumor regulatory T cells (Tregs) infiltration in tumor tissues. In this study, the association of higher levels of PD-L1 expression and Tregs infiltration in tumor tissues with post-operative HCC recurrence in pre-S2 mutant-positive HCC patients was evaluated. We found that patients with pre-S2 mutant in combination with higher levels of PD-L1 expression and Tregs infiltration in tumor tissues were independently associated with a higher risk of HCC recurrence (hazard ratio, 4.109; p value = 0.0011) and poorer recurrence-free survival (median, 8.2 versus 18.0 months; p value = 0.0004) than those of patients with either one or two of these three biomarkers. Furthermore, a combination of pre-S2 mutant, intra-tumoral PD-L1 expression, and tumor-infiltrating Tregs exhibited superior performance in identifying patients at a higher risk of HCC recurrence (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve, 0.8400). Collectively, this study suggests that higher levels of PD-L1 expression and Tregs infiltration in tumor tissues predicted a higher risk of HCC recurrence in pre-S2 mutant-positive HCC patients after curative surgical resection.

Approaches for Detection of Hepatitis B Virus Pre-S Gene Deletions and Pre-S Deleted Proteins and Their Application in Prediction of Higher Risk of Hepatocellular Carcinoma Development and Recurrence.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is among the most common and lethal human cancers worldwide and is closely associated with chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection. Pre-S deleted proteins are naturally occurring mutant forms of HBV large surface proteins that are expressed by HBV surface genes harboring deletion mutations over the pre-S gene segments. It has been well demonstrated that HBV pre-S deleted proteins function as important oncoproteins, which promote malignant phenotypes of hepatocytes through the activation of multiple oncogenic signaling pathways and result in HCC formation. The oncogenic signaling pathways activated by pre-S deleted proteins have been verified as potential therapeutic targets for the prevention of HCC development. Moreover, the presence of pre-S gene deletions and the expression of pre-S deleted proteins in the blood and liver tissues of HBV-infected patients have been evaluated as valuable biomarkers for predicting a higher risk of HCC development and recurrence after curative surgical resection. Therefore, the precise detection of pre-S gene deletions and pre-S deleted proteins holds great promise as regards identifying the patients at higher risk of HCC development and recurrence, thus aiding in more timely and better treatments to improve their survival. This review summarizes the major approaches used for the detection of pre-S gene deletions and pre-S deleted proteins, including the approaches based on Sanger DNA sequencing, pre-S gene chips, next-generation sequencing and immunohistochemistry staining, and it highlights their important applications in the prediction of higher risks of HCC development and recurrence.

Dendritic-Cell-Vaccine-Based Immunotherapy for Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Clinical Trials and Recent Preclinical Studies.

Although many surgical and nonsurgical therapeutic options have been well-established, hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remains the third most common cause of cancer-related death worldwide. Therefore, the discovery of novel potential therapeutic strategies is still urgently required for improving survival and prognosis of HCC patients. As the most potent antigen-presenting cells in the human immune system, dendritic cells (DCs) play an important role in activating not only innate but also adaptive immune responses to specifically destroy tumor cells. As a result, DC-based vaccines, which are prepared by different tumor-antigen-pulsing strategies or maturation-stimulating reagents, either alone or in combination with various anticancer therapies and/or immune effector cells, have been developed as a promising personalized cancer immunotherapy. This review provides a comprehensive summary of the evidence from clinical trials evaluating the safety, feasibility, and efficacy of DC-based vaccines in treating HCC patients and highlights the data from recent preclinical studies regarding the development of promising strategies for optimizing the efficacy of DC-vaccine-based immunotherapy for HCC.

Hepatitis B Virus Pre-S Gene Deletions and Pre-S Deleted Proteins: Clinical and Molecular Implications in Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the most frequent and fatal human cancers worldwide and its development and prognosis are intimately associated with chronic infection with hepatitis B virus (HBV). The identification of genetic mutations and molecular mechanisms that mediate HBV-induced tumorigenesis therefore holds promise for the development of potential biomarkers and targets for HCC prevention and therapy. The presence of HBV pre-S gene deletions in the blood and the expression of pre-S deleted proteins in the liver tissues of patients with chronic hepatitis B and HBV-related HCC have emerged as valuable biomarkers for higher incidence rates of HCC development and a higher risk of HCC recurrence after curative surgical resection, respectively. Moreover, pre-S deleted proteins are regarded as important oncoproteins that activate multiple signaling pathways to induce DNA damage and promote growth and proliferation in hepatocytes, leading to HCC development. The signaling molecules dysregulated by pre-S deleted proteins have also been validated as potential targets for the prevention of HCC development. In this review, we summarize the clinical and molecular implications of HBV pre-S gene deletions and pre-S deleted proteins in HCC development and recurrence and highlight their potential applications in HCC prevention and therapy.

Association of Low Serum Albumin Level with Higher Hepatocellular Carcinoma Recurrence in Patients with Hepatitis B Virus Pre-S2 Mutant after Curative Surgical Resection.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is, globally, one of the most prevalent and deadly human cancers; despite curative surgical resection, its high recurrence rate after surgery remains a large threat, resulting in poor patient survival. The hepatitis B virus (HBV) pre-S2 mutant that harbors deletions spanning the pre-S2 gene segment has emerged as an important oncoprotein for HCC development and a valuable prognostic biomarker for HCC recurrence; however, its relationship with clinicopathological factors is largely unexplored. In this study, the correlation of the deletion spanning the pre-S2 gene segment with clinicopathological factors and the association of such correlation with HCC recurrence after curative surgical resection were examined in HBV-related HCC patients. Inverse correlation between serum albumin level and the deletion spanning the pre-S2 gene segment was identified. HCC patients with the presence of the deletion spanning the pre-S2 gene segment and a low serum albumin level were associated with higher HCC recurrence than patients with either factor alone or neither factor were. Moreover, a combination of the serum albumin level and the deletion spanning the pre-S2 gene segment exhibited better performance than that of either factor alone in predicting HCC recurrence. Collectively, this study shows an association of low serum albumin level with pre-S2 mutant-positive HCC patients, and validates the prognostic value of this association in identifying patients with higher HCC recurrence after curative surgical resection.

Correction notice to "Combination therapy with dendritic cell vaccine and programmed death ligand 1 immune checkpoint inhibitor for hepatocellular carcinoma in an orthotopic mouse model".

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1177/1758835920922034.].

Increased infiltration of regulatory T cells in hepatocellular carcinoma of patients with hepatitis B virus pre-S2 mutant.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a frequent and deadly human cancer worldwide that is intimately associated with chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection. Pre-S2 mutant is a HBV oncoprotein that plays important roles in HCC development and is linked to poor prognosis in HCC patients. However, the profiles of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes in HCC tissues of pre-S2 mutant-positive patients remain unknown. In this study, we performed fluorescent immunohistochemistry staining to detect the infiltration of 'anti-tumor' cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) and 'pro-tumor' regulatory T cells (Tregs) in pre-S2 mutant-positive and -negative HCC patients. We showed that pre-S2 mutant-positive patients had a significantly higher infiltration of CD4+CD25+ cells and forkhead box P3 (Foxp3)-expressing cells but similar CTLs and lower granzyme B-expressing cells in HCC tissues compared with pre-S2 mutant-negative patients. Moreover, the percentage of pre-S2 plus pre-S1 + pre-S2 deletion (pre-S2 mutant) was positively correlated with the density of CD4+CD25+ cells and Foxp3-expressing cells but negatively with granzyme B-expressing cells in HCC tissues. Considering that increased intratumoral Tregs have been shown to promote tumor immune evasion, our data may provide new insights into the pathogenesis of HBV pre-S2 mutant-induced HCC and suggest that therapeutics targeting Tregs may be a promising strategy for treating pre-S2 mutant-positive high-risk patient population.

Enhanced expression of vascular endothelial growth factor-A in ground glass hepatocytes and its implication in hepatitis B virus hepatocarcinogenesis.

UNLABELLED: Ground glass hepatocytes (GGH) in chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection harbor HBV pre-S deletion mutants in endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and exhibit complex biologic features such as ER stress, DNA damage, and growth advantage. The presence of pre-S mutants in serum has been shown to predict the development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in HBV carriers. GGHs hence represent a potentially preneoplastic lesion. Whether a specific growth factor is overexpressed and activated in GGHs remains to be clarified. In this study, growth factor(s) up-regulated by pre-S mutants was identified using a growth factor array in HuH-7 cells. Immunohistochemistry, reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction, and Western blot analysis were performed to study the participation of these genes and their signal pathways in HuH-7 cells and liver tissues. We demonstrate that vascular endothelial growth factor-A (VEGF-A) was up-regulated by pre-S mutants in HuH-7 cells and further confirmed in GGHs by immunostaining. The VEGF-A up-regulation by pre-S mutants could be suppressed by vomitoxin, an ER stress inhibitor. Furthermore, pre-S mutants-expressed HuH-7 cells exhibited activation of Akt/mTOR (mammalian target of rapamycin) signaling and increased growth advantage, which could be inhibited by VEGF-A neutralization. Consistent with this notion, enhanced expression of VEGF-A and activation of Akt/mTOR signaling, comparable to the levels of paired HCC tissues, were also detected in HBV-related nontumorous livers. CONCLUSION: The enhanced expression of VEGF-A in GGHs provides potential mechanism to explain the progression from preneoplastic GGHs to HCC in chronic HBV infection.

Hepatitis B Virus Pre-S Mutants as Biomarkers and Targets for the Development and Recurrence of Hepatocellular Carcinoma.

Chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is a major risk factor for the development of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the leading cause of cancer-related death worldwide. Despite progress in the prevention and therapy of HCC, high incidence and recurrence rates of HCC remain big threats, resulting in poor patient survival. Effective biomarkers and targets of HCC are therefore urgently needed for better management and to improve patient outcomes. Pre-S mutants have been well demonstrated as HBV oncoproteins that play important roles in HCC development through activation of multiple oncogenic signal pathways in hepatocytes, in vitro and in vivo. The presence of pre-S mutants in patients with chronic HBV infection and HBV-related HCC has been associated with a significantly higher risk of HCC development and recurrence after curative surgical resection, respectively. In this review, we summarize the roles of pre-S mutants as biomarkers for predicting HBV-related HCC development and recurrence, and highlight the pre-S mutants-activated oncogenic signal pathways as potential targets for preventing HBV-related HCC development.

Combination therapy with dendritic cell vaccine and programmed death ligand 1 immune checkpoint inhibitor for hepatocellular carcinoma in an orthotopic mouse model.

BACKGROUND: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is among the most common and lethal human cancers worldwide. Despite remarkable advances in treatment, high mortality in HCC patients remains a big challenge. To develop novel therapeutic strategies for HCC is thus urgently needed to improve patient survival. Dendritic cells (DC)-based vaccines can induce tumor-specific immunity and have emerged as a promising approach for treating HCC patients; however, its effectiveness needs to be improved. Recently, blockade of programmed death ligand 1 (PD-L1) immune checkpoint pathway has been shown to enhance anti-tumor immune responses and exhibited great potential in HCC therapy. METHODS: In this study, we generated DC vaccine by pulsing the C57BL/6J mouse bone marrow-derived DC with mouse hepatoma Hep-55.1C cell lysate. We developed a therapeutic strategy combining DC vaccine and PD-L1 inhibitor for HCC and evaluated its efficacy in an orthotopic HCC mouse model in which Hep-55.1C cells were directly injected into left liver lobe of C57BL/6J mouse. RESULTS: Compared with a control group of mice, groups of mice treated with DC vaccine or PD-L1 inhibitor had significantly improved overall survival, reduced tumor volume, and increased tumor cell apoptosis. Remarkably, combination treatment with DC vaccine and PD-L1 inhibitor led to considerably longer overall survival, smaller tumor volume, and higher tumor cell apoptosis of mice than either treatment alone in a dose-dependent manner through inducing a stronger anti-tumor cytotoxic T cell response. CONCLUSION: Our data suggested that combination therapy with DC vaccine and PD-L1 inhibitor might have great promise as a novel treatment strategy for HCC.